The gremlin in your head
How well you perform is linked to your personal stereotype. You have a picture of who you are in your head, often subtly influenced by society (and maybe not so subtly from peers).
I heard this first from Radiolab’s “Obama Effect, Perhaps” based on this article (with the caveat that the study has not gone through formal peer review). The study showed that African American’s average grades on a standardized test improved as Obama’s prominence rose. In a different study, if African-Americans were told that they were solving a “puzzle” instead of taking a “test,” their scores rose. Radiolab also discusses a test in which women with the exact same math credentials as men did worse on a difficult test – until they were told that this particular test showed no difference between men and women.
The most fascinating study to me was a putting test. When participants were told it was an intellectual test about problem solving, the white participants scored higher. When the scientists told a new group that it was a measure of athletic skill, the African-American participants did better.
The studies seem to show that there is a large impact on societal perceptions – whether you believe them or not. You don’t have to even buy into the stereotype, it just has to have the chatter happening in your brain to keep you from full concentration.
“The real subtle power of a stereotype isn’t that it prevents you from the thing you want to do, it distracts you for just a beat from the thing you want to do. And that may be all the difference.” (Radio Lab’s Jad Abumrad)
What you are telling others, or what you are telling yourself, can improve how you perform and how you perceive the world. Believe it.
